1. Field of The Invention
This invention relates to low temperature co-fired ceramics ("LTCC") and, more particularly, to the use of airline structures in conjunction with such devices.
2. Description of Related Art
Low temperature co-fired ceramics ("LTCC") is a developing technology which facilitates high density integration of electronic circuitry in packages which are relatively inexpensive to fabricate.
The dielectric constant of the ceramic material, however, is relatively high. This causes signal losses which often reach unacceptable levels at high frequency. As a consequence, difficulties have been encountered in using this technology to process R.F. and microwave signals.
One effort to solve this problem has been to combine traditional airline structures in machined-out metal housings with electronic circuitry in LTCC structures.
This effort, however, has also met with problems. The resulting system is large and heavy. Construction of these devices is also quite expensive. It requires precision metallic machining, the joining of two different types of systems, and the tracking of all of the components needed in the construction of this combined system.